continue

[ kuhn-tin-yoo ]
See synonyms for: continuecontinuedcontinuescontinuing on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object),con·tin·ued, con·tin·u·ing.
  1. to go on after suspension or interruption: The program continued after an intermission.

  2. to go on or keep on, as in some course or action; extend: The road continues for three miles.

  1. to last or endure: The strike continued for two months.

  2. to remain in a particular state or capacity: The general agreed to continue in command of the army.

  3. to remain in a place; abide; stay: Let us continue in this house forever.

verb (used with object),con·tin·ued, con·tin·u·ing.
  1. to go on with or persist in: to continue an action.

  2. to carry on from the point of suspension or interruption: He continued the concert after the latecomers were seated.

  1. to extend from one point to another in space; prolong.

  2. to say in continuation.

  3. to cause to last or endure; maintain or retain, as in a position.

  4. to carry over, postpone, or adjourn; keep pending, as a legal proceeding.

Origin of continue

1
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin continuāre “to make all one,” verbal derivative of continuus continuous

synonym study For continue

3. Continue, endure, persist, persevere, last, remain imply existing uninterruptedly for an appreciable length of time. Continue implies duration or existence without break or interruption. Endure, used of people or things, implies persistent continuance against influences that tend to weaken, undermine, or destroy. Persist and persevere, used principally of people, both imply firm and steadfast continuance in the face of opposition. Persist suggests human opposition: He persisted after he had been warned; and persevere suggests opposition from any source, often an impersonal one: He persevered despite fatigue. Last often applies to something that holds out to a desired end, fresh, unimpaired, or unexhausted, sometimes under conditions that tend to produce the opposite effect: They had provisions enough to last all winter. Remain is especially applied to what continues without change in its essential state: He remained a bachelor.

Opposites for continue

Other words from continue

  • con·tin·u·a·ble, adjective
  • con·tin·u·er, noun
  • con·tin·u·ing·ly, adverb
  • non·con·tin·u·a·ble, adjective
  • non·con·tin·u·a·bly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

British Dictionary definitions for continue

continue

/ (kənˈtɪnjuː) /


verb-ues, -uing or -ued
  1. (when tr, may take an infinitive) to remain or cause to remain in a particular condition, capacity, or place

  2. (when tr, may take an infinitive) to carry on uninterruptedly (a course of action); persist in (something): he continued running

  1. (when tr, may take an infinitive) to resume after an interruption: we'll continue after lunch

  2. to draw out or be drawn out; prolong or be prolonged: continue the chord until it meets the tangent

  3. (tr) law, mainly Scot to postpone or adjourn (legal proceedings)

Origin of continue

1
C14: from Old French continuer, from Latin continuāre to join together, from continuus continuous

Derived forms of continue

  • continuable, adjective
  • continuer, noun
  • continuingly, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012